The 2026 NBA free agency officially begins in just a flick, and ahead of its opening, the Philadelphia 76ers decided to decline their team option on Trendon Watford, making him an unrestricted free agent. The move saves the team some money and gives them a tad more financial flexibility, making it one of the more predictable calls on their part this offseason.
Be that as it may, while cutting ties with Watford is as safe of a move as it can get, it could end up causing the team some major trouble later on. The 25-year-old forward ended the season in Nick Nurse's doghouse, but for the most part, he was more than serviceable in the minutes he got, especially early into the campaign.
This past season, Watford tallied nightly averages of 6.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game in just 16.3 minutes a night while shooting 51.5 percent from the field. Nurse and the coaching staff enjoyed having his positional versatility at their disposal, although he fell out of their favor when the postseason came due to his limited shooting presence.
Cutting ties with Trendon Watford could backfire on the 76ers later on
Watford shot just 20 percent from beyond the arc and simply refused to shoot threes for the most part, but really, that was the only real caveat to his game. He never got a fair shake with the team later in the season, and now that he is gone, the 76ers have only exacerbated their lack of depth at forward while also jettisoning one of the few players on the roster who can efficiently pass the rock.
With Kelly Oubre Jr. believed to be a major flight risk in free agency, Watford's exit only pushes the 76ers into dangerous territory depth-wise. Despite his shaky footing late in the season, Watford is still good enough to function as depth insurance for a team lacking real forwards. Now that he is gone, the team will have to replace him –– and his kind of production is not easy to acquire for dirt cheap.
Likewise, Philly needs players of the "connector" ilk. Watford had real passing chops in his DNA, which allowed he coaching staff to even deploy him as a nominal point guard at times. For a team with so many individual shot creators, losing a player who savored making the extra pass does not feel productive at the very least.
Again, the merits of parting with Watford are well-pronounced and well-intended on the part of the 76ers. Having said that, every move comes with certain consequences, and with this one, the end game might actually be dangerous enough to make them regret it quickly depending on how the dominoes fall this offseason.
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